70 000 years ago, there existed a species, comprised of scattered populations of a few hundred individuals each, who generally lived peaceful lives in a corner of Africa. Today, that species consists of 9 billion individuals, and it has begun to fundamentally alter the planet. The species in question is us.

What we are doing to the earth, can be registered on a geological timeline showing hundreds of thousands of years. So extensive are the emissions of climate gases and the reduction in biodiversity that we caused, during only a brief moment in the long history of the earth.

Dag O. Hessen, professor of biology at the University of Oslo, is not one for mincing his words. science, not fearmongering, he explains the contemporary state of nature and climate – and how badly things may turn out. The great risk factor is the different feedback loop mechanisms that will intensify the changes.

Simultaneously, human culture is constantly changing. Perhaps are we, too, standing at the tipping point? Will we be able to turn this development in time, to avert the worst possible scenarios? This book is a powerful appeal for the need to do more – and to do it quicker.
 

Scientific scream about the climate – *****
Knowledgeable, nuanced and discursive about the climate crisis.
DAGBLADET

Anything but hysterical about the climate change – *****
Because Hessen is so thorough and factual in his argumentation, the book should be read aloud to all the members of those Facebook groups that think that climate change is a hoax. The seriousness in the text is far from hysteria. This is calm, but insistent, public education.
STAVANGER AFTENBLAD

Give us more books and professors like this! For those looking for a knowledgeable and engaged rendition of the most flammable political and existentially complex problem of our time, The World at the Tipping Point is highly recommended.
NRK

Straight forward and knowledgeable, engaged and terrifying about the tipping points of the climate and diversity. Dag O. Hessen is a sober optimist and believes in the survival of humanity. But even a sober and scientific description of the situation may bring chills down the spine of a reader taking in the facts.
AFTENPOSTEN

Apart from other publications on the topic in later years, Dag O. Hessen comes across as resolute and calm in his enduring and scientific fight against the direction fossil based politics are taking us. And time is running out.
KLASSEKAMPEN

Factual and well founded about the challenges with climate change.
VÅRT LAND

The World at the Tipping Point is important, wise and engaging. This is a book that everyone needs to read!"
Maja Lunde - Bestselling author of A History of Bees.